Ferrous Foliage

15 x 9 x 3/4”, about 10 lbs., cast iron, no idea what it went in/on, I just bought it because the iron is extremely well-defined with a very smooth surface. It was a leftover piece at a small long-silent foundry. There are a couple of places where it looks like something broke off and two mushroom-shaped places on the vine look like attachment points that were to be drilled and tapped later. I wonder if this is a lost-wax casting? Roses or what?

 

Roses. Maybe decoration for a trellis or gate?

 

Thanks, my mom is an avid rose gardener “out West” so maybe I’ll wash the dust off, wax it, frame it and send as Xmas gift.

 

Very nice piece. Probably sand cast, which would be usual for cast iron, using a wooden pattern. As it is two-sided, possibly for a gate.

 

Yep. Sand cast, wooden mold. My dad still had parts made for old power plants the same way, back in the 1980s. There are still a few foundries capable of doing the work. I'd wax the roses up, mount them on a wooden board and let Mom decide where to hang them.